Oh I love London! It’s always been one of my favourite cities and if Cybher, the UK’s first female blogging conference calls, then it’s out of question that I will be there. As the conference starts early on Saturday, we decided that we would make our way to London a day early, so that we could have an afternoon in London and start the next day without hectic, bright red cheeks and sweaty armpits. Simply not the thing to do when you meet all the bloggers you’ve been tweeted with for over a year, is it?
We left Bristol at 11.30 a.m. and arrived in London a good 2 hours later. Amy was brilliant during the entire journey. She smiled and waved at everyone that was interested and we could make our way to The Strand Palace Hotel, our accommodation for the weekend, without a single moan from her. Soon after checking in however hell broke loose and Little Miss Sunshine turned into Little Miss Rain Cloud. I can’t complain though as it was a exciting journey for Amy and with a new and quite hectic surrounding, she was just to alert to think about falling asleep in her pram. Initially, we had planned to walk around the city a bit, but we decided that it was best to stay in the hotel for a while, so we could relax and freshen up while Amy had a well deserved nap in the travel cot that Ms Cybher herself has kindly organised for us. Thanks Siân!
For dinner, we went to a nearby steak house, the Scotch Steak House, which is literally a five minute walk away from The Strand Palace. Our waitress seemed a little grumpy at the start and pulled a disgusted face when Ben asked for asparagus with his steak, the food however was really nice and reasonably priced for central London. The restaurant was also really family friendly and served some steamed mixed vegetables and bread for Amy - she did however enjoy my meal just as much as I did. I went for char-grilled chicken in a herb and garlic marinade that came with a side of French beans and sautéed potatoes. Ben had a 8oz rump steak with salad and French fries and also couldn’t fault his meal. Tomorrow, we are thinking of heading to China Town for some authentic Chinese food. Well, as authentic as it gets in London, but I am sure that the crispy ducks in the windows and the lanterns in the streets will at to the Chinese flair.
Before heading back to the hotel (traveling with a 12 month old is that rock’n’roll), we decided to go for a walk around the Strand and down the Mall to do a bit of sightseeing. It was great. We stopped here and there, took photos and watched cheeky squirrels jump from tree to tree in St. James Park. Amy absolutely loved it. She sat in her pram and couldn’t stop giggling. Tiredness? Not until we got back to our hotel room. Within minutes she fell asleep with a big smile on her face. She must love London just as much as her mummy and daddy!
Well done! Sounds like you had lots of fun! Enjoy tomorrow too!
Sounds like you've had a lovely day! Can't wait to meet you tomorrow 🙂
I think I’ve seen you two table next to me in Jo Gifford’s session x
Wow what a lovely blog. Looks like you had a lovely Friday x